Loose-leaf book of zipper type having easel writing table construction



F. S. SCHADE LOOSE-LEAF eoox or ZIPPER TYPE HAVING EASEL wan-ma TABLE CONSTRUCTION F'ild Jung 7, 1940 April 29, 1941.

INVENTOR JIZ/YZt'JJGMAE ATTORNEYS ZZMI BY Patented Apr. 29, 1941 LOOSE-LEAF BOOK OF ZIPPER TYPE HAV-I ,ING EASEL WRITING TABLE ,CQNSTRUCn O .I f

Frank FStanIey Schade, Holyo'ke, Mass, .assignor to'National-Blank Book Company,v a corporation of; Massachusetts Application June 7,1940, Serial No. 339,345

1 Claim. (01.28l-83) This invention relates to loose-leaf notebooks.

The object of my invention is to increase the utility of such books by providing a construction which enables the bookto be converted into a reading or writing desk. v

A further object is to secure this added utility without interfering with the normal use of the book for usual loose leaf purposes and without sacrificing any desirable structural features from the point of view of the best practice in looseleaf book construction.

Other and further objects will be apparent from the following specification and claim.

In the accompanying drawing which illustrates one embodiment of my invention- Fig. 1 is a plan view of a, loose-leaf notebook according to my invention, the book being in open position, parts being broken away;

Fig. 2 is an elevational view looking from the bottom of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view, parts being broken away, showing the book set up in desk form;

Fig. 4 is a plan View of the book in closed position; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary side elevational View showing how the slide fastener functions to lock the parts in desk forming relation.

In carrying out my invention I construct a loose-leaf binder of the box type. I provide front and rear covers l and II hinged at l2 to a back portion or member l3. The covers and back are made of relatively stiff material covered in the usual manner with fabric or similar material which may bridge the gap between the cover and back portions to form the hinges 12. A loose-leaf binder mechanism l of any usual or desired construction, and shown provided with binding rings I6, is secured to the back member l3. Flexible closure strips of fabric I! are secured, as by stitching l8, to the inner surfaces of the covers closely adjacent the free edges of the latter. The strips I! are providedalong their free edges with a slide fastener mechanism of usual form and indicated generally at 20. The strips are so attached to the covers as to have a tendency to incline inwardly toward the inner surfaces of the covers, as is clearly shown in the drawing.

One or more members such as shown at 2! may be secured to the inner side of one or both covers to provide pockets such as 22, in which loose papers may be placed. To the free side edge of one of the covers I hinge a rigid flap member 25. As shown, this flap is formed of a rectangular piece of stiff, heavy cardboard '26 covered with a tough, flexible covering-mate rial-buckram or leather for example. The covering material 21 is extended beyond the outer edgeofthe board26,,as at 28, and the extended portions are stitched in between the strip "and the'book cover H1, thus hinging the flap to the free sideedge of the bookcover.

The dimension a of the rigid flap 25 is made sufficiently smaller than the overall height of the covers of the book so that the flap may be swung about its hinge without interference from the closure strips I 1. When, as shown, the book covers have rounded corners, the dimension 0.

it that when flap 25 lies against the inside of the book cover, as in Fig. l, the free edge portion of the flap will overlap the mouth of pocket 22 and form a closure for the pocket.

To convert the book to desk purposes the cover to which the flap 25 is attached is raised and the flap is swung downwardly and its free edge seated snugly beneath and against closure strip I! at the outer edge of the opposite cover, as shown in Fig. 3. As is clearly shown in the latter figure, the manner of securing the strip II to the cover, that is with the strip laid inwardly of the edge of the cover instead of as an outward extension of the cover, provides a sharply angular rest for the edge of fiap 25 and insures against any possibility of the fiap slipping or riding over the closure strip. By closing the slide fastener as far as the separation of the covers will permit, as shown inFig. 5, the flap is held tightly in its seat beneath the closure strip. The parts are thus locked in desk forming position, so that the desk may be picked up and moved about without danger of collapse. This arrangement provides a very rigid and reliable support for the inclined desk member.

As will be seen from Fig. 3, due to the action of hinges l2, the book cover when in desk-forming position rests at its lower ends on the rings H5." The space between rings I6 being substantial, such support at separated points tends to cause the cover to warp slightly, with the result that the surface becomes uneven. I prevent this warping tendency, and at the same time provide a rest for the bottom of the sheets or other material positioned on the desk, by applying to the outer face of the desk-forming cover a strip 30 of stiff material such as wood or a molded plastic. Strip 30 is secured, to the cover in any suitable manner, as by countersunk rivets 31. As is shown in Figs. 2 and 3, I place this strip 30 opposite the points of contact of the rings "5 and the inner surface of the cover, thus effectively guarding against any warping of the desk surface. While this position of the strip may sacrifice some desk surface since it is somewhat higher than is needed for the use of the strip as a paper rest, the space sacrificed is not great and it avoids the necessity of incorporating a ring guard in the inner make-up of the cover. By making the strip 30 sufficiently wide to extend closely adjacent the hinged edge of the cover and by beveling the strip toward that edge, as indicated at 32, the relatively high position of the strip 30 neither detracts from the appearance of the notebook nor the comfort with which the closed book may be carried with the back seated in the palm of the hand and the thumb and fingers extending along the sides of opposite covers-a usual manner of carrying notebooks. The opposite unbeveled edge 33 forms a ledge to support papers and the like on the desk,- as indicated by the dotted line at 34 in Fig. 3.

I claim:

A loose-leaf notebook which includes a back member, to the inner face of which a ring binder mechanism is secured, and front and back cover members hinged to the sides of the back member, slide fastening closure strips secured to the edges of the cover members to normally extend inwardly of the cover edges and form a sharp angle therewith, and a stiff flap hinged to the free side edge of one cover member, the free side edge of said flap being engageable between the closure strip and inner surface of the opposite cover member to position the covers at an angle to each other to form a desk structure, the upper edge of the cover which forms the desk surface being supported by said flap and the lower edge of said cover resting on the rings of the binder mechanism and a strip of stiff material secured to the outer surface of the desk-forming cover, opposite the points of engagement of the rings with the inner surface of said cover, to reenforce said cover against the warping action of the rings and to form a rest for sheets placed on the desk surface,. said strip a being sufliciently Wide to bring its lower edge closely adjacent the hinged edge'of said cover, the strip being beveled toward that edge.

FRANK STANLEY SCHADE. 

